Lead
Action level- city detected
- 1
- above 15 µg/L
- 0
- Washington, DC2 µg/L
Dashed line: 15 µg/L action level, a treatment trigger.
State water report · updated 2026-10-15
District of Columbia Water Quality Report 2026: 1 City Ranked by the Records
Is District of Columbia tap water safe to drink? It depends on the water system that serves you. Of 1 District of Columbia city report, none has a health-based violation on the federal record in the last 10 years. Search your city for its own records.
State water snapshotCounts of cities whose serving system reported each result. There is no statewide score: PurityMap does not average local records into a statewide safety verdict.
Is District of Columbia tap water safe to drink?
PurityMap does not give a statewide safe or unsafe verdict: District of Columbia tap water comes from many separate public water systems, so the answer depends on the one that serves you. Of 1 District of Columbia city report, none has a health-based violation in the federal SDWIS record in the last 10 years, and none was above the 15 µg/L lead action level. None of the 1 District of Columbia city report had a PFAS sample above a 2024 EPA limit. 1 of 1 have none of these on record, which is not the same as every contaminant being tested. Your city's report shows its own records, and plumbing inside a building can still change what reaches your tap.
PFAS sample above a 2024 EPA limit
MCL0of 1 city
City reports whose system had a PFAS sample above a 2024 EPA limit.
PFOS in District of Columbia →Lead detected
Action level1of 1 city
90th-percentile lead above zero.
Lead across District of Columbia →Lead above action level
Action level0of 1 city
No city on record above 15 µg/L.
How lead is measured →Hard or very hard
No federal limit1of 1 city
Above 120 mg/L as CaCO₃ (7 gpg) on the USGS scale.
About hard water →City rankingRanked by the Purity Score of each city’s main water system. Scores belong to water systems; there is no state score. The score is computed only from contaminants measured in the published EPA record, so this ranks the record, not which city's water is safest.
Which District of Columbia cities have the best tap water records?
Washington, DC is at the top of the ranking. Cities are ranked by the Purity Score of each one's main water system, computed only from contaminants measured in the published EPA record, so the ranking compares the records, not which city's water is safest. Each city report names the water system behind its score.
Top 1 of 1 · Purity Score, highest firstSee all 1 in the table →
Top 1 of 1 · 90th-percentile lead, highest firstSee all 1 in the table →
Top 1 of 1 · reported hardness, hardest firstSee all 1 in the table →
By contaminant
lead and hard water in District of Columbia
Hard water
No federal limit- city with a value
- 1
- hardest (Washington, DC)
- 7.4 gpg
- Washington, DC7.4 gpg
Aesthetic measure on the USGS scale; not a health finding.
Counties
1 county with city reportsDistrict of Columbia counties
- District of Columbia1 city
SuppliersA city and its water system are not always the same. Large systems can serve many cities, and one city can be served by several systems.
by population servedLargest water systems
- D.C. WATER AND SEWER AUTHORITYWashington, DC · DC0000002 · 632,323 served
Full index
All 1 District of Columbia city reports
Every District of Columbia city report, A–Z. Use a letter to jump, or search by name.
Next step
State patterns can’t tell you what reaches your tap.
01 · Learn
Learn your supplier
Resolve your address to the one public water system that serves it.
Find my water →02 · Test
Test your own tap
Plumbing inside a building can add lead and change what reaches your glass.
How to test →03 · Solve
Treat by concern
Only after a city report names a finding, match a treatment certified for it.
Treatment options →Questions
District of Columbia water, frequently asked
FOLLOW DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA WATER RECORDS
Get District of Columbia updates
We'll email you when District of Columbia records change, such as new PFAS or lead results.
Follow District of Columbia's water →Is District of Columbia tap water safe to drink?
PurityMap does not give a statewide safe or unsafe verdict: District of Columbia tap water comes from many separate public water systems, so the answer depends on the one that serves you. Of 1 District of Columbia city report, none has a health-based violation in the federal SDWIS record in the last 10 years, and none was above the 15 µg/L lead action level. None of the 1 District of Columbia city report had a PFAS sample above a 2024 EPA limit. 1 of 1 have none of these on record, which is not the same as every contaminant being tested. Your city's report shows its own records, and plumbing inside a building can still change what reaches your tap.
Which District of Columbia cities have the best tap water records?
Washington, DC is at the top of the ranking. Cities are ranked by the Purity Score of each one's main water system, computed only from contaminants measured in the published EPA record, so the ranking compares the records, not which city's water is safest. Each city report names the water system behind its score.
How does District of Columbia tap water compare across cities?
PurityMap ranks 1 city in District of Columbia by the Purity Score of each city's main water system, computed only from contaminants measured in the published EPA record. Scores belong to water systems, not to cities. The highest published score is Washington, DC's main water system: D.C. WATER AND SEWER AUTHORITY · PWSID DC0000002 · Purity Score 98 (Excellent) · Confidence: moderate · Assessed at the water-system level. The ranking compares the records, not which city's water is safest, and your own tap can differ with household plumbing.
How many District of Columbia cities had a PFAS sample above a 2024 EPA limit?
None of the 1 District of Columbia city report had a PFAS sample above a 2024 EPA limit in EPA's UCMR 5 testing. PFAS were detected below the limit in 1.
Is there lead in District of Columbia tap water?
Utilities report lead as a 90th-percentile result from home taps. 1 of 1 District of Columbia cities reported a value above zero, and none was above the 15 µg/L federal action level. Lead usually comes from a building's own pipes and fixtures, so only a test at your tap tells you what you drink.
Does District of Columbia have hard water?
Hardness is published in utility water-quality reports for 1 District of Columbia city on record; the hardest is Washington, DC at 7.4 grains per gallon. Hardness affects scale and appliances; it is not a health finding.
Data and methodology
How PurityMap analyzes water data →How every District of Columbia number is made
- Source
- Ingestion
- Normalization
- Benchmark
- Analysis
- Score
- Ranking
- Records analyzed
- 32 results · 1 water system
- Sources
- EPA UCMR 5 (PFAS, 2024) · EPA SDWIS Lead and Copper Rule 90th percentile · health-based violations · utility Consumer Confidence Reports where on file
- Data dates
- Updated 2026-10-15
- Scoring
- Purity Score per water system; no state score
Limits of a state page
- A statewide page cannot tell you what reaches a specific address. Water quality varies by supplier, sampling period and household plumbing.
- Read the city report for the evidence behind a local result.
- Cities without a published report are not shown, which is not the same as clean water.